


Live To Tell

by BlackHatKat, Pandora (Anatheia)



Category: RWBY
Genre: Background Canon compliant, Cinder is totally evil, Don't give Cinder any wine, Drunken Confessions, Emerald is diet-evil, F/M, Implied smut?, Inspired by Chibi, Mercury is evil-evil, No Cinder-puppets here, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-06
Updated: 2018-03-06
Packaged: 2019-03-27 15:04:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,131
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13883364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlackHatKat/pseuds/BlackHatKat, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anatheia/pseuds/Pandora
Summary: Mercury discovers that Cinder has a secret, and it only shows up when she drinks.





	Live To Tell

**Author's Note:**

> Pseud posting for a friend who has twenty days to wait for her invite...BlackHatKat is her profile, go show her some love.

The path was uneven, but they paid it no mind. Three figures fled through the wilderness, two on the run and the third slung over the larger man's back.

Mercury let instinct take over as he followed Hazel down the mountain road. Emerald's green hair bobbed up and down in front of him and he chose to fixate on that rather than on what had just transpired at Haven.

He didn't want to think about it.

About her.

About how she left them...

And didn't come back.

 _i have a tale to tell_  
_sometimes it gets so hard to hide it well_

The heat of the burning house up on the hill pulsed against his back. It was done. The old man lay facedown on the ground behind him, still and silent. About fucking time. His own limbs ached and if he wasn't running high on adrenaline he'd probably be collapsing right now as well.

It was then that she appeared out from the forest. The woman in red. Cinder Fall. She smiled while the dark-skinned girl next to her regarded him hesitantly. It turned out that they had been watching the fight the whole time and that Cinder was looking for his father.

Ha. Poor timing, lady.

"What's your name?" Cinder asked, stepping forward.

He stared back at her. "Mercury."

Their eyes met and the woman's smile grew. "Mercury. Tell me. Are you anything like your father?"

 _i was not ready for the fall_  
_too blind to see the writing on the wall_

The stories were real, and the Fall Maiden was their target. However, she was young and relatively untested, so he had no reason to doubt Cinder's plan.

The woman oozed confidence, and now she was more powerful than ever, having successfully stolen half of the Maiden's abilities. She had been disappointed at the interruption by the huntsman, but no matter. They'd be able to finish the job soon enough.

Cinder Fall was an intimidating woman and Emerald couldn't help but be awed by her.

Himself on the other hand... Mercury was impressed but not nearly the blind follower that his green-haired companion had become. He didn't entirely blame Emerald, though. Their situations had been completely different when the dark-haired woman had entered their lives. And then there were the looks Cinder would give him when they were alone...

 _a man can tell a thousand lies_  
_i've learned my lesson well_

He stood by the door while Emerald talked up the faunus shopkeeper, pretending to browse the books. Huh. They really did have both hardcover and paperback versions of Violet's Garden. He opened one of the copies and skimmed the words. Good story but no pictures. Lame.

It had taken some time, but they had finally made it to Vale. Soon, they'd be inflitrating the Huntsman school as Haven students and then the real fun would begin at the Vytal Festival. But first, he and Emerald had a traitor to take care of.

Emerald skipped backwards as the faunus hopped up onto the counter, bearing his claws and leaping at them.

Mercury kicked one of his greaves up to intercept him as he tried to attack. The sound of the sharp impact echoed throughout the small shop. The silver-haired young man grinned. This was one of the best parts of his job.

 _hope i live to tell the secret i have learned,_  
_'till then it will burn inside of me_

'Sparring' with Pyrrha Nikkos had been the most interesting thing he'd gotten to do so far since they had gotten to Beacon. Cinder had given them strict orders to be on their best behaviour and although it had been difficult, they had managed. Today, however, Mercury was finally able to mess around and see what the famous red-haired girl was all about.

They called her 'the Invincible Girl' but after a short evaluation of her abilities, he discovered that although she was a skilled fighter, it was merely her Semblance that had aided in the creation of her moniker. She was definitely dangerous to him because of said Semblance, but that didn't prevent him from scheming up ways to beat her in a proper fight... or imagining the girl battling Cinder. Now that he'd like to see.

"You should be able to take her no problem," he told Cinder as she sat on the bed with a black garment in her lap and sewing needle in hand.

Cinder looked at him. "It's not about overpowering the enemy," she lectured, waving her hand. Her eyes narrowed and she leaned forward, speaking sharply to both him and Emerald. "It's about taking away what power they have!" They both nodded, having seen such philosophy in action. Cinder leaned back, her hands in her lap. "And we will, in time."

Mercury lay back down on the floor with a groan. "I hate waiting," he complained. Undercover operations were the absolute worst, especially when he had to play nice like this.

_live to tell_

"Don't worry Mercury, we have a fun weekend ahead of us," Cinder reminded him, her eyes glowing ever so slightly. She examined the tip of her needle and then resumed her sewing.

"Dancing the night away," Mercury sighed, turning his head to Emerald who was skimming through her scroll. "Guess you're my date, Em."

"You'd better not step on my feet or I will stab you," she snarked and he laughed.

"In the middle of a crowd, huh? Now wouldn't that be a scene. Maybe I should." He rolled over onto his side, propping his head up with his hand. "So what sort of dress did you swipe for the party, huh? Has it got a short skirt like your uniform?"

Emerald growled and was about to reply, but shut her mouth when Cinder looked up from her sewing at her.

"Emerald, go to the cafeteria and fetch us some dinner."

"...yes, Ma'am." Emerald stood up and left the room, but not without shooting Mercury another death glare.

"You two have developed quite the little relationship, haven't you?" Cinder remarked idly once Emerald was gone.

Mercury shrugged, having gone back to his comic book. "I guess. She's fun to tease, but that's about it. Not exactly my type." He didn't see the wicked smile forming on Cinder's face as she held her dress up to inspect her handiwork.

"I see."

 _i know where beauty lives_  
_i've seen it once or twice_

Cinder appeared out of the corner of the ballroom, her black sequined gown hugging her curves in all the right ways. She made her way towards himself and Emerald as they swayed back and forth in the middle of the dance floor amongst the other students and staff.

"May I cut in?"

Emerald let go of his hand and turned to her. "Of course," she nodded and drifted off, probably to amuse herself by pickpocketing some of the other students. However he could feel the daggers the mint-haired young woman was staring into the back of his head as she left.

Mercury held out a hand and Cinder slid into his arms. It was not lost on him that she fit perfectly. "And how's your night been?" he asked casually, leading her into the next song.

"Hmm..." Cinder began, gently pressing her hand against his chest. "A little more... exciting than expected."

"Anything we should be worried about?" Mercury's hand gripped her waist a bit tighter in anticipation of any potential threats.

"Hardly," Cinder scoffed. "They'll be scratching their heads long after we've finished what we came here for."

"So then what now?" He looked down at her and she met his eyes. Maybe it was the proximity, but he swore he saw something hiding behind her amber irises. She fluttered her eyelashes and whatever was there vanished.

"Enjoy the rest of the night," she said with her usual tiny smirk, as if she knew what he had seen. "After all, it is a party."

"Yes Ma'am," he replied, and she let out an airy laugh, lifting one of his arms and spinning herself around on her sharp black stilettos. She twirled back into him, her face stopping in front of his, closer than it had ever been before. He could feel her warm breath as her smirk turned into a sultry smile and she pushed herself backwards, putting that distance between them once again.

 _i know the warm she gives_  
_the light that you could never see_

"Mercury, did I ever tell you that you're my favourite henchman?"

The silver-haired young man looked up from the floor where he had been doing a set of push-ups. His dark-haired boss had sauntered into the Beacon dorm room. She was alone, and he vaguely wondered where Emerald was. From this angle, he was getting a very generous view of her long smooth legs which was also in part thanks to the black and white Haven uniform skirt.

"...Do you really mean that?" he asked, raising an eyebrow as he continued his workout.

Cinder sighed lightly, walking over to the bed and sitting down. She shrugged, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "I don't know why I even bother to keep the others around." She pulled out her scroll and opened it up, idly sifting through some files. "You're better than Emerald."

The admission caught him offguard and he suddenly lost his rhythm, but he managed to brace himself before he faceplanted onto the floor.

"W..What?"

 _it shines, it shines, it shines inside_  
_you can't take that from me_  
_it shines inside, you can't take that from me_

Cinder looked up from the scroll and gave him a tiny smirk. "Hm? Why so surprised? It's not like you've been silent about how you feel about her."

Mercury rolled over and turned around so that he was facing her while still seated on the floor. "Well it's hard to tell sometimes if she's really committed. It's like she's just... testing the waters with her hesitation."

"I'm aware. But she's useful, and important to the plan." Cinder skimmed through more text and images. "What do you think about Roman?"

Mercury snorted. "The guy's a joke," he replied. When he and Emerald had to 'apprehend' the white-coated gangster after the breach in Vale, he had made a point of putting in a little extra effort in roughing the man up before turning him over to the Atlas officials. Now that had been fun. He crossed his arms. "Him and his stupid hat... and he's gotten his ass kicked by those little girls more than once."

 _a man can tell a thousand lies_  
_i've learned my lesson well_

Cinder chuckled. "Very true," she agreed and set the scroll down next to her on the bed. "And Neo?" she asked.

"Hm..." Mercury tapped his chin with a finger, contemplating the petite tri-coloured girl with the deadly parasol. "I... I can't decide if she's really cute..." He noticed a small flicker of fire in the corner of Cinder's eyes. "...or really creepy. I'm leaning towards creepy," he finished his statement and saw the flame wink away.

"I see." Cinder tilted her head to the side, staring at him for a moment before patting the empty spot beside her. "Come here."

Slowly, Mercury rose and sat down next to the woman on the bed.

Cinder turned to him. "So would you like to know why you're my favourite?"

"Um... sure." He watched Cinder's smirk curl into a much more dangerous one. She leaned towards him and he could suddenly feel the actual heat from the Maiden powers radiating from her aura. Her hand rested on top of his, threatening to burn a hole through the back of his gloves.

"Let me show you first."

 _hope i live to tell the secret i have learned,_  
_'till then it will burn inside of me_

The empty bottle of wine sat on the bedside table. He hadn't drank any of it; bad memories. Cinder lay curled up next to him on the bed, having fallen asleep after their evening activities.

It had become a bit of a routine now... not the alcohol consumption, but the rest of it. He certainly wasn't about to complain. However his relationship, if you could call it that, with Emerald had gotten considerably rockier. But they both still worked for the same woman, and Emerald would never betray Cinder. Of that they were sure.

Currently Mercury lay awake, his arms up with his head resting on his hands while he stared up at the white ceiling. The room was silent, save for the quiet breathing of the dark-haired woman.

"...Mercury..." Her voice was partially muffled by the pillow and sheets but she didn't sound like she was awake.

He glanced over at her.

"...run..."

Frowning, he sat up. Cinder was not typically a deep sleeper and he had never heard her talk like this before. It must have been the wine. He reached a hand out but right before he could touch her shoulder she rolled over, her eyes closed, hair spilling across her pale face. Her suddenly hand shot out and clutched at his arm, her face contorting as if she was in pain. He tensed but realized she was still asleep.

"What the hell?" Mercury murmured quietly.

"...run away... start... a family... with me.."

Something inside his chest tightened. "...Cinder?"

Cinder's hand then loosened its grip and it slowly slid back down his arm and onto the sheets. Her uncomfortable expression quickly melted away and shortly the sounds of soft snoring filled the room.

Mercury let out the breath he had been holding since the moment she had touched him. He watched her for a few minutes and when she didn't stir again he dared to carefully brush the hair off of her face. He paused as his fingers touched something damp on her skin. Tears. He made a mental note to never let her drink an entire bottle of wine again.

 _the truth is never far behind_  
_you kept it hidden well_

Cinder paced in front of him as he sat in the rather uncomfortable chair.

"And you're sure?" she asked, her arms behind her back, head tilted to the side.

He sighed. "Bad hair, used a scythe, and smelled like my dad after a long day... it was him." Not that wanted to remember his old man at all, but the sight of the huntsman in the courtyard had spooked him. They had come too far now.

Emerald shifted uncomfortably from her seat on the small bed. "What do we do?" she wondered.

After a short pause, Cinder announced that they would do nothing. Her reasoning was sound and she sent them back to their rooms while she made the necessary preparations for the next day. Not long after she was done going through some of the information from their newest access point, she decided that the information that Mercury had brought her about Qrow Branwen's appearance warranted at least a small reward. So despite the late hour and the fact that he and Emerald would be fighting tomorrow, she called Mercury back for a quick... visit.

 _if i live to tell the secret i knew then_  
_will i ever have the chance again_

This was way too easy. He laughed to himself as he literally ran circles around the Beacon team. Oh, we'll give them a show alright. A few quick kicks followed by a barrage of his Dust-infused ammo made for an impressive performance, or so he figured. Emerald then pulled the prissy girl out of the middle area and towards the forested zone leaving him and the big guy with the sword to go one on one.

Smirking, he went for another attack but the guy in green armour managed to grab him by his shirt and toss him into the rocky geyser zone. He skidded across the ground and raised his legs in time to block the incoming blow of the giant sword.

As he proceeded to finish off his opponent, his mind started to wonder if she was watching.

When he and Emerald exited the arena floor, they each received a message on their scrolls. Emerald had punched him hard in the shoulder before scurrying off to run Cinder's errand while he went for a well-earned victory celebration.

_if i ran away, i'd never have the strength to go very far_

As he heard the explosion behind him, his lips curled into his usual smirk. Everything had gone according to plan up until now... he turned around and Yang advanced, her eyes red. She struck him multiple times, successfully depleting his aura in giant chunks until delivering the final blow to knock him to zero. It fucking hurt. He knew it would. He landed roughly on the ground, wincing. The crowd was applauding. Heh.

He drew a breath, knowing Emerald was about to get to work. Here we go. No turning back now. He wasn't worried about the plan; he and Emerald were professionals... but as Yang struck him and he fell... he suddenly had an ominous feeling about the next stage of the operation.

 _how would they hear the beating of my heart_  
_will it grow cold_

It happened again.

The restless sleep. The confession. The tears.

Cinder came to see him while he was 'laying low' to give him new instructions. She didn't need to. She could have sent him a message. She could have sent Emerald, or hell, even Neo. But Cinder showed up personally and it wasn't until she had shoved him back onto the worktable that he could smell her breath and spotted the empty bottle over by the doorway.

 _the secret that i hide, will i grow old_  
_how will they hear_

Fire and chaos. It was everything they had worked towards. Once again, Emerald's facial expression displayed her confliction over the grand scheme. Mercury held up the scroll, recording it all as per Cinder's instructions. She sauntered behind him, taking in the sights as well.

"Beautiful," she remarked, while Emerald stared down from the rooftop.

"It's almost sad," the mint-haired girl said.

"It's horrendous," Cinder stated mildly and glanced over at him. "Make sure you focus on the Atlesean Knights."

He smirked. "Oh I'm getting all of it." It really was a masterpiece. Cinder was an artist.

"Good. Continue the broadcast until the end."

A sudden rumbling shook the earth and both he and Emerald stumbled while Cinder merely adjusted her stance to maintain her perfect balance.

"And do not miss what happens next." She smiled and walked past him. He followed her with the camera as she began to walk away. "Mm..." She glanced back sharply and he returned to filming the fighting below. "Wait here," she told them. "I've got a date with an old friend."

Emerald blinked, her red eyes clearly nervous but she nodded. "Good luck," she said.

Cinder chuckled and looked from her to Mercury. Their eyes met and he saw it again. The tiny pinprick in the woman's self-confidence. Her smile faltered for a split second before she whirled back around on her heels and marched over towards the far side of the rooftop.

He didn't need to be worried.

She'd be fine.

Right?

 _when will they learn_  
_how will they know_

Mercury leaned against the wall as Emerald sat beside Cinder's bedside. They had barely made it back here and now the woman who had recruited them was severely injured all thanks to one little girl. He should have killed her when he had the chance.

Cinder would recover, but not without a cost... a very hefty one.

Neither him or Emerald had been permitted to be present when Cinder had been... healed. He had waited patiently in the room they had been given while Emerald had paced around like an animal in a cage.

"How can you be so calm?!" the mint-haired girl had hissed at him, not daring to raise her voice in this place.

He had met her red eyes evenly, but the intensity of his look made her take a step back in surprise. "What makes you so sure that I am?"

Emerald had shut up but continued to pace frantically, allowing him to concentrate once more on quelling his own rampant emotions.

And now, their... boss... lay in front of them asleep. Altered.

She would only speak to Emerald. She barely even looked at him when she was awake.

He knew though, from the moment she had returned to them in her new red dress and short hair... the same length as when he had met her, that this was not the same Cinder Fall from before. Things would be different now.

 _a man can tell a thousand lies_  
_i've learned my lesson well_

Mercury watched as the newly spawned Grimm emerged, dragging itself out of the oily black pool and slowly treading across the blood-red coloured landscape with its compatriots. Beside him, in a familiar sight, Emerald stared down at the unsettling scene in obvious horror from their vantage point. He frowned to himself. If he hadn't had such a fucked up childhood then this would definitely be the stuff of nightmares, including the proprietor of this place where they were currently staying. And why was he still here?

There was a snap of fingers behind him.

That was why.

 _hope i live to tell the secret i have learned,_  
_'till then it will burn inside of me_

The look on Cinder's face as she torched the space on the floor was something he hadn't seen before. He knew that Emerald was using her Semblance to make Cinder see the red-hooded, silver-eyed girl-- Ruby Rose.

Mercury was silent as the white-haired nightmare stood to the side, watching the current Fall Maiden demonstrate what she could do now. He knew that Cinder had struggled to master her new powers. She worked at it every day, and at first it was draining her dry, but eventually it got better. Emerald had told him all this. She was still the only one that Cinder would speak to.

In all the time they had been here, she had still not spoken to him alone. She'd look at him briefly, as if she wanted to, but then she'd turn away.

Cinder Fall wanted to be strong.

Cinder Fall wanted to be feared.

Cinder Fall wanted to be powerful.

She had made her choice, that much was obvious now. He'd still follow her lead, but he knew that things would never be the same between them again.

 _the truth is never far behind_  
_you kept it hidden well_

It was like old times, if he could compare it to anything. Well, it would have been if they weren't being babysat by that Arthur Watts character. Of course, Mercury didn't complain, it wasn't his place. Besides, they were back out in the world and on an assignment to see, of all people, Raven Branwen, the sister of the man who had interrupted them all that time ago. Unfortunately for him, they had to be on relatively good behaviour yet again. At least they had gotten to rough up the bandits at the gate when they first came upon the camp.

It didn't go unnoticed by him that Cinder chose to keep him closer to her rather than Emerald. Appearances. That's all it was. That's what he told himself.

She silenced him when he spoke out of turn. He couldn't help it, though. He vaguely wondered if there'd be any repercussions later. Ever since Cinder's voice had recovered enough she still avoided him. Maybe this would finally garner an actual reaction out of her other than treating him at arm's length like she did Emerald.

Raven's comments didn't phase him. He had his reasons for staying. Even more so, now.

She was in there somewhere... but did she even want to be found?

 _if i live to tell the secret i knew then_  
_will i ever have the chance again_

Finally. Round two against Blondie and her sister. A real fight. They had the advantage. This was it, no holding back. But they couldn't kill Ruby... and although he and Emerald didn't always see eye to eye... this was one order that they both agreed would be the hardest to follow.

Cinder had gone down into the vault with Raven and the Spring Maiden once again leaving him and Emerald to cover her back. She'd get the Relic and then they'd be out of there.

It'd all go right this time.

Right?

_live to tell_

\-----------  
Lyrics from Live To Tell  
\- cover version by Lacuna Coil https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfofmjeB_Ts  
\- original version by Madonna https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzAO9A9GjgI


End file.
